Courtney Huck and Edgar Masmela told us of the work of Friends of the Children, an endeavor that has merited monetary support from the club. Our, March 17, 2018, major fund raiser, “Debuts and Discoveries”, will highlight support for The Friends of Children.
They have been in Seattle 17 years, are in 12 school districts and 78 classrooms. The most vulnerable youth are identified as early as the kindergarten level. At this point, a professional mentor remains a presence with a child through the latter’s graduation from high school. To have one person in one’s life, a caring adult, becomes a huge impact. It imparts a sense of purpose and bears results.
There is many a cycle of generational poverty. Friends of the children (henceforth FOC) have repeatedly shown that stepping in, as a trained professional, makes a difference. One result is a child’s avoidance of the Juvenile Justice System. Helping one child in this way saves the taxpayers $900,000.
The mentors also serve as advocates, one example being in transition of a child from one foster home to another. The mentor will in such an instance make it easier for a child to adapt and see to the arrangements. Everything that FOC does is intentional. This includes having parents as partners in this work. If a child is weak in one subject, focus is placed on that subject.
Thus far, 84% of those mentored finish high school. And 94% have avoided the Juvenile Justice System even though their parents might have had experiences with the law. For each dollar saved, $7 is saved for the economy. 32 new children will enter the program in the next 4 years. Federal grants will expand the program. By 2020, more than 250 kids will be enrolled.
Comment: To have a one-on-one relationship with someone who encourages, and cares can translate risk factors into a success story. It is anticipated that, in generations to come, sordid family histories shall be left behind.
Perspective!
Fall is definitely here! November’s service project is a clothing drive. Please bring slightly used sweaters, jackets, or any other warm article of clothing to our meeting at 
In early October, three schools and their communities in the Retalhuleu district of Guatemala celebrated the delivery of new computer equipment and the beginning of two years of training to bring the wealth of information and educational resources available on the internet to their classrooms. Teachers in each of these schools, Escuela Recuerdo de Perez, Escuela San Jose and Escuela Sector Aguilar, will learn to use the equipment and to access the internet to harness the resources there (“Think of being able to access the information in all the libraries of the world”) to dramatically enrich classroom instruction in each of their schools.
In the Seattle University Business school, a requirement for completing a degree is a course in Business Ethics. Jeffrey Smith, Chair of Professional Ethics, stated the high objectives of this program. These include fairness, dignity of humanity, values-driven business leaders, social justice, social responsibility, and ethical awareness.
While the major University Sunrise Rotary fundraiser is 6 months away (March 17, 2018), we need event sponsors NOW!
Deluged as we are with news, it has now gotten to the point at which the genuine from the false needs to be determined. Di (Day) Zhang, of the Seattle Public Library, excerpting from the “Fake News Survival Guide”, arrived to be of help.
USR member Scott Jamieson, in his best of humor, took the assemblage on a rapid-fire visit to eye diseases. Several of his points:
July 6th was our first meeting for the 2017 Rotary year. President Dave Hanson outlined his new lineup and restated our focus for the year. Kids are primary as we seek to improve on our past efforts and look to increase our visibility and look for additional avenues for Service.